Women entrepreneurs at the heart of Kenya’s supply chains

Despite a constitutional directive to reserve 30 per cent of public procurement opportunities for women, youth, and persons with disabilities, only 17 per cent of that allocation was used in Kenya by 2024. This concerning gap was at the heart of the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) Forum held in Nairobi under the theme “From Pledge to Practice: Inspiring Tangible Actions on Supplier Diversity.”

Organized by UN Women and the Global Compact Network Kenya, the forum brought together business leaders, government representatives, and development partners to champion gender-responsive procurement (GRP) and promote supplier diversity across both public and private sectors.

“Gender-responsive procurement is more than fairness, it’s smart economics,” said Antonia N’Gabala-Sodonon, UN Women Kenya’s Country Representative, “By supporting women-owned businesses, we’re strengthening entire supply chains and contributing to national development.”

Globally, women-led enterprises secure just 1 per cent of procurement contracts, according to UN Women’s 2022 report. In Kenya, women-led small and medium enterprises (SMEs) account for 31.4 per cent of all businesses and contribute 20 per cent to the national GDP, yet they remain underrepresented in government and corporate supply chains.

Kinoti Muriuki from the National Treasury, speaking on behalf of the Cabinet Secretary, noted that although Ksh 278 billion has been disbursed through the AGPO programme since its launch in 2013, women have only accessed Ksh 148 billion. “This represents about 53 per cent of the total allocation to special groups, but we are still below the expected 30 per cent threshold overall,” he said.

Muriuki announced that the government is rolling out a new electronic government procurement system (EGP) to enhance transparency and prevent abuse of the AGPO programme. “This system will integrate AGPO and procurement databases, eliminating the use of proxy registrations and ensuring genuine women-owned businesses benefit,” he explained.

Representing the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Abdulla Alzarooni highlighted his country’s progress on gender equality. “The UAE ranks first in the MENA region on the Global Gender Gap Index and has seen strong participation of women in high-value supply chains,” he said. “We are proud to partner with UN Women to support gender-responsive procurement globally, including a $15 million contribution to accelerate women’s economic empowerment.”

The forum also encouraged private sector companies to adopt the WEPs and set clear procurement targets for sourcing from women-led businesses. Kenya currently has 127 signatories to the WEPs, but implementation remains uneven.

“Many companies still lack procurement targets or training programmes to support women suppliers,” Ms. Sodonon noted. “This forum is about moving beyond commitments to real, measurable action.”

Participants called for simplifying tender processes, increasing awareness, and offering capacity-building programmes for women entrepreneurs to compete effectively.

“The time to act is now,” Ms. Sodonon said. “We must transform procurement from a missed opportunity to a tool for gender equality and national progress.”